Bridal Bliss: My Heart Is Yours

After years of crushing on Rita, Ephraim finally got her to return his calls. Although she played hard to get, once the couple started spending time together, they fell deeply in love. Their Texas wedding was as elegant as they come. Share their love!

Mixing Business with PleasureEphraim knew there was something special about Rita the minute he laid eyes on her at a National Association of Black Accountants Convention in Miami. He tried to get to know her better then, but it just wasn’t their time. She gave him her number, but whenever he would call, she’d never answer or call him back. Undeterred by her reluctance, Ephraim made a point of checking in with Rita periodically via Facebook and text message. The two lived in different states, which made it even tougher to get her attention. A year later, he attended a leadership conference in her hometown and reached out again. He found out she was interning at the same company he was working for at the time, and he wanted to pick her brain. Unfortunately, Cupid’s arrow had missed once more. Ephraim still couldn't get her off his mind.

Third Times a CharmA couple months later, when Ephraim learned that Rita had accepted a full-time job at his company, he reached out once more. “I asked her to add me to the company instant messenger so we could chat whenever she was free,” he tells us. “She did, and our daily chatting sessions would last all day. I really don’t remember getting any work done.” This time, he’d finally gotten her attention, and she was equally smitten with him. They began taking turns to fly to each other’s hometowns for a visit and the bond only blossomed more. “The relationship grew into something bigger, and I’m happy it did because here we are now,” Ephraim says. “I honestly knew a couple months after we started conversing that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.”

Happy HolidaysTypically, Rita would always spend the holidays in Nigeria, but in 2011 she decided to stick around the U.S. Her plan was to spend New Year’s Eve with her beau in Houston. When she arrived, he told her they’d be taking a romantic, private cruise together. Rita was quite excited, but she noticed Ephraim was acting rather strange. They talked and danced and talked some more. It was the perfect night, and she began to be on proposal alert. At the end of the last dance, as the boat docked, Ephraim asked her to stay on the dance floor. That’s when he began to tell her everything she’d always wanted to hear. “I love your family, and I want to be a part of your family,” he said. Rita’s heart skipped a beat. She felt herself falling in love with him all over again. He got down on bended knee and popped the big question. “Hands down, it was the best moment of my life,” she recalls. Can you feel the love?